On the island of Kekon, the Kaul family is locked in a violent feud for control of the capital city and the supply of magical jade that endows trained Green Bone warriors with supernatural powers they alone have possessed for hundreds of years.

Beyond Kekon’s borders, war is brewing. Powerful foreign governments and mercenary criminal kingpins alike turn their eyes on the island nation. Jade, Kekon’s most prized resource, could make them rich – or give them the edge they’d need to topple their rivals.

Faced with threats on all sides, the Kaul family is forced to form new and dangerous alliances, confront enemies in the darkest streets and the tallest office towers, and put honor aside in order to do whatever it takes to ensure their own survival – and that of all the Green Bones of Kekon. Jade City was very near the top of my Favorite Books I Read In 2018 list. It was for sure one of the most original books I’d come across in a long time, and I quickly fell in love with both the intricate world Fonda Lee created, and the incredibly complex cast of characters within it. Needless to say, Jade War was one of my most anticipated books for 2019, and just…oof…this book fucking amazed me, page by page, chapter by chapter.

Jade War expands the scope of the story in many ways, while also tightening the focus even further on the characters. I have a feeling when all is said & done with The Green Bone Saga, the character arc for Kaul Hilo is going to be one of my all-time favorites. What Lee has done with this character over the course of the first two books in this series is nothing short of astonishing.

In Jade War, we see Hilo coming into his own as Pillar of the No Peak clan, while also going through a tremendous amount of personal growth & change. He’s one of those characters that’s almost…tricky to root for? Like, you can’t help but fall in love with the guy, and he’s obviously someone with a big heart & a fierce love for his family. And we really see a gentler side of Hilo in this book that I could never have anticipated. But at the same time, his capacity for ruthlessness & moments of shocking violence can leave you feeling shook!

Shae also goes through a lot of change in Jade War, as she struggles to find a balance between maintaining some semblance of a personal life, along with all her responsibilities as Weather Man. There’s also some really great moments between Shae & Hilo…these sort of lovingly antagonistic jabs they take at one another give you a sense of what they were like as children, while also showing how close they are despite their differences.

The world building on display in Jade War is just fucking incredible. To the point that the city of Janloon honestly feels like a real place to me. Fonda Lee manages to create a setting that lives & breathes…you can feel the sticky humidity on your skin, and smell the ocean in the distance. I feel like I’ve eaten delicious Kekonese food, and drank hoji in the Double Double. What’s remarkable is that Lee gives the reader this vibrant, tactile experience, but you never feel bogged down by endless descriptions.

If I could only pick one book series to be adapted for a Netflix/Hulu/Amazon/etc. series, I think at this point, The Green Bone Saga would be my pick. It’s just so utterly unique, vivid, fun, gut-punchy, and gloriously violent…for real, there’s an action sequence in Jade War that had my stomach in knots…like, holy fuck, I can’t take any more!! This second entry in the series expands upon every aspect of Jade City…we get to explore more of the world beyond Janloon, and we get to know this incredible cast of characters much more intimately. This is a series that I think would appeal to so many different kinds of readers, and I really hope it finds the audience it deserves. I can’t recommend anything as highly as Jade War…if The Green Bone Saga is not on your TBR, your TBR is broken!! READ THESE BOOKS!!!

Massive thanks to Orbit for sending me a copy!! This book is fucking spectacular!